The Best Concealed Carry 9mm

There's a classic and timeless piece of wisdom about choosing a concealed carry weapon: The best gun is the one you'll practice with often and carry every day.

Here are some critical questions to keep in mind as we work through these reviews of popular concealed carry 9mm pistols: Will I practice with it often?

Will I carry this pistol every day?

Will I practice with it often?

Does it fit to my body or in my handbag without telltale bulging?

What holster will I use?

What accessories are important to me?

Let's identify some basic criteria, and then get down to business.

First, why a concealed carry 9mm? Why not a .45 or .22?

Many of us choose the 9mm because, much like the AR 15, it packs a decent punch with pistols available in a reasonable weight. Also, the prices of the firearms themselves and the 9mm ammunition make it easier to keep up with our weekly marksmanship training. You can easily find endless, redundant debates about the benefits of 9mm vs 45. These really boil down to a question of "more light rounds, faster, out of a less expensive and lighter weapon" vs "fewer heavy rounds, slower, out of a more expensive and heavy weapon."

We may wade into those waters ourselves in a future post, but for now we'll just point out that the two calibers are very different and can't really be compared. Better yet, take five minutes to listen to this fellow, he articulates clearly what we've found to be true over the years.

Given this insanely simplified assessment, we choose 9mm for our frequent practice and for our concealed carry guns primarily due to weight, size, cost of the guns and ammunition, and our own experiences with accuracy and rate of fire.

Pro Tip From Dave

9mm pistols are just plain smaller and easier to conceal. The ammunition is less expensive so we get more range time. Lastly, we find that we are able to shoot 9mm faster and more accurately than .45. We're more effective with it. Simple.

Second, how does this weapon fit into our overall preparedness kit?

A Concealed Carry 9mm is part of Everyday Carry. It's one of the things that you shouldn't be without. The eternal quest of choosing a concealed carry weapon is one of balancing weight, size, accuracy, and power with a form factor that's small enough to conceal and comfortable to carry all day every day.

Taller and larger men are at a distinct advantage, because they can simply hide more gun. This works out well because we need a larger pistol to accommodate larger hands anyway. Smaller men, most ladies, and people living in very hot climates (year-round shorts and t-shirt weather) will want to opt for a smaller, lighter weapon.

As part of your Everyday Carry, your concealed carry gun will also be with you in Get Home or Bug Out scenarios. Depending on your choice, it can also double as your standard carry pistol. For example, the Springfield XD-S comes in a 4" version with an 8-round extended magazine. While that capacity is vastly inferior to the standard 16 round load of the Springfield XD 4" Full Size 9mm, it's an acceptable compromise if you're just beginning to build your arsenal.

Our recommendation for preparedness is to purchase an accurate concealed carry 9mm now, and then add a standard home defense or holster carried pistol as your time and budget permit.

Our criteria for the best concealed carry 9mm is uncomplicated. We tested pistols that:

Weigh less than 25 oz

Feature a 3-4" barrel

Street price of $500 or less

Readily available Crimson Trace laser sights

You'll also find our recommendations for gear with each pistol, including our favorite holsters and laser grips in each category. Because, well, we like gun gear almost as much as we like our guns. For each pistol, you'll probably want to look at the Pearce Grip Extensions.

#1 Best Concealed Carry 9mm: Springfield XD-S 3.3" or 4"

The Springfield XD-S is our #1 recommendation for the Best Concealed Carry 9mm. This pistol is available with a 3.3" barrel or 4.0" barrel. The 4.0" barrel version comes with one standard 7-round magazine and one 9-round extended magazine, while the 3.3" version comes with two 7-round mags only (but can still use the extended round mags).

Reasonably light weight and sporting a red fiber optic front sight, the 4" version felt better balanced during our drills. The XD-S also features an aggressively textured grip, which we prefer over smoother pistols. The stability provided by the extended magazine pushes this choice over the top for those of us with larger hands.

There is no external safety selector, instead the XD-S combines a safe trigger mechanism with a grip safety, and features a loaded chamber indicator. An integrated Picatinny rail is a nice touch for those of us interested adding accessories.

Weight: 25 oz

Dimensions: 7.0"L x 4.4"H x 0.9"W (4" version)

Barrel: 3.3" or 4"

Capacity: 7+1 or 9+1 (both included)

Other: Picatinny Rail, Over-Textured Grip

Street Price: $500

Our Favorite Springfield XD-S Accessories:

Best Concealed Carry Runner Up: The Smith & Wesson M&P Shield

The Smith & Wesson M&P Shield is a solid choice that performs. Like the Springfield XD-S, it supports either a 7 or 8-round magazine. Older models include an external snag hazard thumb safety, however Smith & Wesson recently started producing a variation without the safety lever.

Recoil is about standard among pistols in this category, and the primary difference between this and the Springfield XD-S is the Shield's understated grip texturing compared to the aggressive texturing of the XD-S. This is, of course, a matter of preference which may come into play is a wet, sweaty, greasy, or bloody hand scenario.

Recommendation: If not interested in the advantage of the Springfield XD-S' 4" barrel or Picatinny rail, then the M&P Shield is a fantastic choice.

Also, consider the Smith & Wesson M&P Compact, which weighs just a little more and features a 12-round magazine.

Weight: 19 oz

Dimensions: 6.1"L x 4.6"H x 0.95"W (4" version)

Barrel: 3.3"

Capacity: 7+1 or 8+1 (both included)

Other: Picatinny Rail, Over-Textured Grip

Street Price: $375

Our Favorite Smith & Wesson M&P Shield Accessories:

High Quality Workhorse: The Glock 26

Referred to as the "Baby Glock", the Glock 26 is a solid, dependable, high quality pistol that's been proven over its many years of production. The same width as the full size Glock, the magazine holds a generous 10 rounds, and the wider grip allows for better control while shooting.

This pistol is a little bit of an outlier. While not feature-rich like the XD-S, the Baby Glock's quality and reliability is on par with the rest of the Glock family. That is, the pistol fires well each and every time.

Recoil is light-ish for its size, and interchangeable back straps allow for adaptation to each shooter's hand size. The sights are standard, simple, 3-dot white.

Recommendation: The Glock 26 is a good choice for someone who doesn't mind the added width.

Weight: 21.7 oz

Dimensions: 6.4"L x 4.2"H x 1.2"W

Barrel: 3.4"

Capacity: 10+1 (two included)

Other: Adjustable Sights, Reversible Mag Release

Street Price: $500

Our Favorite Glock 26 Accessories:

#1 Micro Compact: Ruger LC9s

The Ruger LC9s is the 9mm variation of the popular Ruger LCP .380. The LC9s' 5.5 lb short trigger pull is the biggest improvement over its predecessor the straight Ruger LC9, which featured a long double action trigger that made firing awkward at best.

Being the most lightweight of our choices, we were pleased to discover when performing our tests the the recoil was less than expected. The LC9s can be purchased with or without an external snag hazard safety. An integrated trigger safety is standard.

Recommendation: Like all micro compact pocket guns, the LC9s is going to be small for most hands. Having fired both, we give the Ruger a slight edge over the Beretta Nano due to handling and the ability to pack one extra round in either the standard or extended magazine. The LC9s is up to the task and a great choice choice for a buyer primarily concerned about weight and ease of concealment.

Weight: 17.2 oz

Dimensions: 6.0"L x 4.5"H x 0.9"W

Barrel: 3.12"

Capacity: 7+1 or 9+1 (only 7+1 included)

Other: Trigger Safety

Street Price: $350

Our Favorite Ruger LC9s Accessories:

Micro Compact Runner Up: Beretta BU9 Nano

The Beretta BU9 Nano is truly a pocket gun. Solidly built with tiny dimensions, the Nano may well be too small for men with medium to large hands. (Fortunately bigger men can conceal bigger guns, so this works out just fine.) Think of it as the pistol version of a hammerless revolver with nothing to snag on clothing, placing this pistol on par with the Ruger LC9.

The magazine is a bit light at 6-rounds, but extended 8-round magazines are available. The Nano's sights are adjustable, and it features no external safety. As with most models, Crimson Trace laser sights are available.

Recommendation: The Beretta BU9 is a fine micro compact pocket gun with a very ​low profile. Simple on design with as many features as one needs in a pistol of this type, we recommend it as an addition to your arsenal for everyday carry.

Weight: 17.7 oz

Dimensions: 5.6"L x 4.2"H x 0.9"W

Barrel: 3.07"

Capacity: 6+1 or 8+1 (both included)

Other: Adjustable Sights, Reversible Mag Release

Street Price: $400

Our Favorite Beretta BU9 Accessories:

These selections are what we consider to be the best of the best within our chosen criteria of light weight, feature rich pistols that won't break the bank. Yes, there are dozens of other options out there to comb through before making a selection, however given sales volume and ease of use, most consumers will select one of these five pistols for their outstanding quality and affordability.